Non-Linear Aging
by f-romanoff-13
Summary: Hydra gets their hands on a piece of machinery whuch they use to try and get rid of Hawkeye and Black Widow; it turns them into kids. But what starts off as nothing more than an inconvenience turns more sinister when something starts happening to the two children...
1. Chapter 1

**_Okay, so I know I already have a deaging fic, but this one is less fluff more plot and has been sat on my laptop for months waiting for me to do something with it or bin it, so I thought i'd see what you guys thought_**

* * *

"Stark I need you to come in"

"Fury, maybe you didn't get the memo;** I don't work for you!**"

"I wouldn't be asking you, but I'm desperate"

"Fury, I haven't slept a wink in days. Get your agents on it, I know you at least have a couple of matter assassins on your payroll"

"Tony, they're why I need you come in. Please?"

"W-what happened?!" all traces of annoyance, anger and sarcasm were instantly replaced with worry. Tony may not like Fury, but Clint and Natasha were part of his team, they were his friends Fury's tone of voice was causing him to panic

"Meet me at my office?"

"I'll be there in ten"

Tony strolled down the dull, grey shield hallways counting the million and one things which could have gone wrong with Clint and Natasha's latest mission; they went to Bermuda right? Looking into some new HYDRA weapons...  
Tony was momentarily distracted when a young boy strolled past, he was about nine or ten and wearing nothing but a hospital gown. Tony thought it vaguely odd that a child was walking around shield but it wasn't until he caught a glimpse of the little girl with him did he find it truly odd; she had long, curly red hair and sparking green eyes; she was so Natasha it was untrue. She walked beside him, only around eight, wearing a matching medical gown.  
Taking a second glance at the boy, Tony instantly recognised the grin on his face; Barton.

The girl noticed the look Tony gave them, grabbed the boys hand and ran, Tony was too bewildered to process what he had just seen before an alarm sounded and several armed shield agents ran up the hallway after them.

Tony still hadn't quite worked out what the hell was going on... Did those two have kids that no-one told him about? De-aging? Because that had happened before... Time travel? Cloning? Maybe he'd imagined it?... Tony was seriously beginning to doubt what he'd seen when he reached his destination: Fury's office.

He found fury in his office; desk upturned and laptop smashed to pieces on the floor by the opposite wall. He was pacing and rubbing his forehead in a way which told Tony something had gone seriously wrong... Hill stood in the corner, nodding to Tony as he entered but otherwise remaining still.

"Sit down Stark" he told him, his voice had an air of defeat in it already.

Tony picked one of the none broken chairs up from the floor "What happ-" Tony began, but was interrupted when Steve burst through the door

"Sorry I'm late sir"

"It's alright Rogers, take a seat"

"Wow. Avengers Assemble? This must be bad..."

"Stark-"

"Bruce and Thor joining us too?"

"Thor is in Asgard and I'm having trouble contacting him. Bruce is overseas and almost equally difficult to get through to"

"What about Clint and Natasha?" Steve asked, noticing how no one had mentioned them

"They're why I've asked you to come in"

The statement hung there in the air for a moment before Steve asked "What happened to them?"

It was a foregone conclusion that they were either critically injured, dead or in serious trouble...

"Remember last year, when the six of you were reverted to Children for several months..?"

Realization dawned on Tony's tired mind; he knew those green eyes, he recognised them instantly

"Well... It's happened again" Fury continued, "They're kids"


	2. Chapter 2

_This chapter was added retrospectively to show some of Clint and Natasha's POV of what was happening while they were at Shield_

* * *

Clint woke in a strange room he was guessing was in a hospital. He tried thinking back to the last thing he remembered; he was about to perform, it was his first night and he was nervous, Barney told him to 'get over it', but they'd made it perfectly clear that if he couldn't deliver; he'd be out. And he had nowhere else to go... Then he woke up on a beach somewhere, there was a little girl with him and then... He wasn't sure.

Looking around the bright room, he saw that same red-headed girl was asleep on the bed beside his. They were both attached to machines, Clint ripped off everything connecting him to them and unplugged them quickly from the wall to stop them beeping. Pulling the IV drip from his hand, he crossed the room to see her more closely. Her arms and legs were strapped to the bed and she had a few extra medications being pumped into her system than he had.

There was someone yelling outside the door, a man in a suit was shouting at a doctor, he looked angry, no; more than angry; furious. Clint crossed to the door to listen;

"She's a emchild/em! She's no threat to you or your staff! Now get her off those drugs and unstrap her from that damn bed before I report your ass to Fury!"

"I'm sorry Agent Coulson, Romanoff is deemed a threat in her current condition and I've been advised to keep her sedated until the situation can be assessed further"

"I am her handler, I'm telling you I've assessed it and you need to get her off those drugs! Don't you think she's been through enough of this shit in her lifetime already?!"

Clint had heard enough, the poor girl looked only around 6 and he felt sorry for her. He remembered passing out on the beach, but not before she had rushed to his side when he had fallen, tried to help him back to his feet. He guessed they were on the same side, and he ought to help her.

Pulling the IV's from her arm, he hoped it wouldn't take long for her to wake. They needed to get out of here if they'd been kidnapped, Barney would be worried about him, and he was sure the little girl would have someone missing her too...

Natasha began to fight against the restraints before she was even fully aware they were there. She heard someone muttering to her, but not in Russian. She understood the language but in her current state of teetering on the edge of consciousness, she hadn't figured out which it was.

Her eyes eventually opened, blurry and overwhelmed by light. The blonde boy was beside her, whispering something about hurrying up, escaping and kidnapped. Is that what had happened? Had she been taken?

No, Ivan would have kept better tabs on her than to allow this to happen; and she wasn't yet allowed on solos missions. It was a test perhaps? Until the drugs were out of her system and she could think straight; she just couldn't be sure.

"Are you okay?" Clint asked her, leaning over so she could see his face from where she was still tied to the bed

"Help me?" she asked, playing the helpless little girl perfectly. She needed her arms free

"You're not going to hurt me are you? We're on the same side right?" he asked hesitantly

"Um hum" she nodded, forcing herself to cry as he fumbled with the leather strap round her right wrist.

"Thank you" she told him when she was free

The man in the suit was fast approaching their door, he looked livid after the doctor had won the argument. Clint pushed Natasha back into the corner before grabbing the metal chair, as the door opened; he swung it forcefully before shouting;

"Run! Quick let's go!"


	3. Chapter 3

"No no no, start again?"

"I thought you were supposed to be a genius Stark?"

"I am, mostly... But it's not every day two of your friends are regressed to kids"

"It's really not all that rare..."

Tony rolled his eyes, mimicking Natasha perfectly as Steve continued to nervously pace behind him  
"No, this is totally different to last time!"

Fury took a deep, calming breath; choosing to ignore Stark and start from the beginning;

"Yesterday Agents Romanoff and Barton landed in Bermuda to do some recon on a suspected drug cartel, everything was going well until at 0800 hours when we lost contact. Agent Hill was with them in Bermuda and found a group of Hydra agents trying to leave the area with two unconscious children"

"Two unconscious children with a striking resemblance to your missing agents?"

"Unfortunately so... Back up was called, the threat neutralised, and the kids retrieved. They're still unconscious and under observations up in medical at the moment"

"Erm, no they're not"

"What do you mean 'they're not'?"

"I saw them when I was on my way up here..."

"Saw them where exactly?"

"They were just walking down the corridor..."

"And you didn't think to stop them?!" Fury asked in disbelief

"Well I didn't know who they were!"

Coulson suddenly burst through the door, a growing bruise on his temple  
"Sir, they – they got away"

Fury sighed and threw another chair... He really had anger issues...  
"Shut down the building, no one leaved until those kids are found!"


	4. Chapter 4

"Stark, Rogers. I need your help on this one"

The desperation in his voice almost made Tony feel sorry for the guy

"We'll help you look" Steve informed him, turning to stroll past Coulson out of the office, with Tony hot on his heels

"What happened Phil?"

"They woke up and freaked out. Clint hit me with a chair and when I came too; they were gone"

"He hit you with a chair?" Tony asked, a slight smirk on his face

"This is nothing like last time; they're not as accepting of their situation. Whatever did this to them hasn't been as gentle on their minds; they're scared and confused... And we all know how bad their childhoods were..."

The two Avengers nodded solemnly

"This is hopeless, they could be absolutely anywhere. We need to think, where would they go?" Tony asked, frustrated. He always knew shield HQ was too big...

"Air vents?"

"Could then even reach? I mean; how old are they this time?"

"Medical reckon Romanoff is around 8, but she's small for her age, and Barton is about 10"

"And even now they've banded together..." Steve added, peering down a dark hallway, "Hey Phil, what's down here?"

"Oh nothing, they're doing some building work or something down there..."

Steve set off at a run, past the 'no entry' signs and into the darkness as the working lights faded away. Tony followed, before Phil too set off in the same direction

Maria's voice sounded over the coms as they searched the empty rooms;

"Report? Dennings?"

"Negative"

"Pine?"

"Second floor clear Mam"

"Tyler?"

"No sightings yet"

"Lisbon?" ... Lisbon report? ... Dammit! Coulson, tell me you have something?"

But Phil didn't answer; he was too busy watching Steve slowly approach a wary looking Clint who was crouching beneath a table. He was so still, Phil would have missed him altogether.

"It's alright buddy, you can come out. You're safe" Steve whispered gently, keeping his hands in view so as not to startle the young boy.

It almost seemed to be working before Natasha appeared from nowhere; she threw Phil to the ground before incapacitating Tony, a small foot resting over his neck while a bewildered Tony was left sprawled on the floor, looking up at his miniature friend who was pointing a gun at his head. She threatened Steve in Russian, or at least they assumed it was a threat by her tone, and when Steve turned back around; Clint was gone. Natasha disappeared before Tony even had a chance to blink and they were back to square one...

"We did... But they're gone. All agents be aware; they're armed" Coulson managed to say, trying to breath steadily having been winded when Natasha had thrown him to the ground

"Regroup in Fury's office" Hill instructed

Tony ungracefully climbed back to his feet, while Steve offered Phil a hand

"I am so glad I wasn't around last time this happened" Tony muttered as the three of them made their way back to the director's office

"You were... Sort of" Steve answered

"Well, yeah. But I was a kid too"

"You were one of the troublesome ones" Phil informed him, remember the time nine year old Tony Stark blew up one of the shield labs. "But something tells me it's going to be different this time..."


	5. Chapter 5

"How the hell did Romanoff get a gun?" Fury demanded

"I'm assuming they took down Lisbon and his team; they're not responding"

Fury sighed, "They're _children!_ And there's only **two** of them! How the hell did they take down a team of five highly trained agents?"

"We're talking about Romanoff and Barton Sir, even as children they were skilled"

"So it seems, we need a way to get through to them!"

"Sir" Steve interrupted "I think Clint will be easier to convince, it's Natasha who's going to be the problem"

"Agreed. Coulson, Hill; do you think bringing in Pepper would be beneficial? She had a connection with them last time"

"Oh no!" Tony stopped them before either of them could answer "Romanoff just threatened me with a gun, Pepper isn't being brought into this until you can guarantee her safety"

"Sir, I agree with Tony. Last time they had a kind of familiarity; an affinity to the people they knew and trusted as adults. Right now; they're just scared kids who don't know where they are or who to trust, and for kids like Clint and Natasha; that makes them dangerous"

Fury rubbed his temples as his head felt ready to explode. He couldn't believe this had happened... **Again**

"So what do we do?" Agent Dennings asked, playing with her pen as she thought over their options

"Trick them? Try and trap them in the detainment cells?" Tyler offered

"They're not that stupid" Tony muttered

"Besides, tricking them isn't generally the best way to gain their trust" Steve warned

"What if we managed to separate them? Bring Barton in, would Romanoff follow?"

"Who knows? In their adult state; without a doubt, she'd follow him to the end of the world, but right now... As far as they're aware they only met an hour ago" Phil sighed

"Is it worth a shot?" Fury aimed at Coulson

"Let's call it plan B. I think we should give Tony and Steve another shot"

Glancing an eye over at the one third of the Avengers he had left, Fury nodded, despite the concerned looks they were giving Coulson at his suggestion

The agents filed from Fury's office, going to try and locate Lisbon and his missing team and leaving the hunt for two mini assassins to Iron Man and Captain America.

"Why'd you say that? Why us?" Tony asked, when it was just the three of them left in the room

"Not one of those agents knows Barton or Romanoff like you two; you really think that separating them right now is what they need? They're scared and alone, but they're together. And right now, that's what they need"

The two men nodded, before standing to start their search again.


	6. Chapter 6

"You think we should suit up?" Tony asked, feeling oddly vulnerable without his suit. He liked to believe Natasha wouldn't harm him... At 8 years old she hadn't killed anyone yet, but she'd been trained too, and he'd seen the fear in her eyes as she stared down at him

"I don't think that'd be wise Tony, if one thing is going to set Natasha more on edge, it's a man running after her sporting the American flag"

"Oh, yeah. Right" Tony almost laughed at his ridiculous suggestion, and then a thought hit him and he ran to the elevator

"Tony? Where are you going?"

"The roof"

"What? Why?" Steve stuttered, running after him

"Whenever Barton is on a mission, or she has a nightmare; Natasha goes to the roof of the tower to watch the stars or sit in the rain. Barton sits up there for hours in complete silence; he likes the space to think. It's comfort, and familiar. It's where they'll be..."

"You're sure?" Phil asked, amazed that Tony Stark had paid so much attention to notice these habits

"I – I think so. It's my best shot..."

They disembarked the elevator on the top floor and made their way to the stairs to the roof, Phil waited there; there last thing they wanted was to make them feel overcrowded.

"Clint, Natasha?" Steve asked gently on finding the two children by the edge of the rooftop of shield HQ. Natasha was stood looking up at the sky, not minding one bit about the rain which soaked her hair and ran down her face. Clint was sat with his feel dangling over the edge; watching the streets below with a keen interest.

"How do you know our names?" Clint asked, not looking at the two men

"We're here to keep you safe"

Natasha laughed, not with humour, but disbelief. She looked at them, and Tony saw once again her emerald eyes betray her true emotions; complete and utter fear

"Why should we trust you? We don't know you" she asked sternly, ignoring the slight shake in her hands as the cold rain started getting to her

Steve raised his hands, slowly. And Tony mimicked the gesture; "We're unarmed, we've been trying to find you for a while; we were worried about you"

"Why?"

"We know people have hurt you, but you're safe now. I promise"

Clint finally looked over from his perch at the edge of the building, and Natasha's gaze remained locked with Steve's as she tried to read him.

"We're in America?" Natasha asked

"New York" Tony answered

"Why?"

"Natasha, can't we have this conversation inside; you're cold" Steve said, gesturing to her shaking form as she stood, soaked head to toe in the rain

"I'm fine" she insisted

Clint went to stand by her side, and the two waited patiently for an answer

"This building, those agents; they're shield. They're who got you out, to keep you safe. This is where they're based. New York" Steve answered simply

Tony hoped that would be the end of the conversation; he himself was starting to get cold and he wasn't only wearing a hospital gown

"Why us?" Clint asked, peering round Steve to Tony, to see if he would answer any of their questions

"W- what do you mean?" he asked, unsure what Clint meant by that

"There must be loads of kids in bad situations. Why not them? Why pick a carnie kid from Iowa and a girl from Russia?"

So it seems the two of them had at least traded some of their back stories while they'd been giving shield the run around

"Erm... Because..." Steve stammered, unsure of how to answer

"Because you deserve better; a second chance" Tony offered hopefully

Natasha gave Clint an uncertain glance as he stepped toward them. Steve was right; Clint was easier to convince

Steve's smile of relief as Clint approached the doorway back inside quickly vanished as Natasha took an unsteady step backwards. He was painfully aware how close to the edge she was, and she was so small and frail; he feared a gust of wind would cause her to fall.

"Natasha?" Tony asked gently, not moving from his spot but causing the young girls focus to be placed entirely on him; "Just come back inside, please"

She looked like she might be considering it, their persistence accompanied by the chill she was beginning to feel were wearing her down. But then Agent Sitwell burst through the door demanding to know if they were making any progress, it started all four of them, but as Natasha jumped, he footing slipped on the wet surface of the roof and she fell...


	7. Chapter 7

Clint reached her first, and to his relief he saw four tiny fingertips, straining to grip the edge of the building. Lying down, he gripped her other hand and slowly began to pull her back up as best he could. As Steve reached them her grip of the rooftop gave out and it was only Clint preventing her from falling. He slid forward as he held up Natasha's added weight, and Steve grabbed him just as he began slipping.

Tony was finally given the opportunity he'd been waiting for to punch Agent Sitwell in the face.

Steve dragged Clint back and lifted Natasha back onto solid ground as Tony rushed over and helped the three of them back to their feet; Steve looked relieved, Clint looked scared and Natasha looked outright terrified; she flinched away from him when he went to help her and she quickly re schooled her featured into a mask of indifference.

"Nice reflexes" Steve told Clint, clapping him on the shoulder and earning himself a grateful smile for the compliment.

"You okay kiddo?" Tony asked Natasha, noticing her stoic expression and silence.

"Y-you didn't let me fall" she stated, confused.

"Of course not, that's like a 300 foot drop!" Tony told her, peering over the edge of shield HQ down to the sidewalk below and shivering at the thought

"B-but it was my fault... You s-should have let me fall"

"Did you _want_ to fall?" Clint asked, a little taken aback by her reaction.

"No" she whispered

"Then why would you think that?"

"_They _would have let me fall..."

Tony and Steve glanced at each other and decided it was time to get back inside and end this conversation

"Do you trust us now?" Steve asked, positioning himself between the children and the edge of the roof

Clint agreed hastily, a grin on his face; the kid clearly looked up to him and that made Tony smirk. Natasha nodded slightly, avoiding eye contact with the others and crossing her arms over her chest to try and stop shaking. If Tony didn't know Natasha better, he'd have sworn she was blushing...

"I'm sorry" she whispered, before trailing slowly after the others as they made their way back inside.


	8. Chapter 8

Tony and Steve lead the two sodden children back to the medical bay, where Coulson, Hill and Fury were waiting for them.  
Agent Sitwell was just leaving with a bloodied, broken nose as they arrived, and Tony caught an approving smile from Fury.

"We got any dry clothes for them?" Steve asked, grabbing a towel and wrapping it over Clint's shoulders.

"I'll see what I can do" Maria said, quickly leaving the medical bay

"There are a few tests we need to run, and then you can take them home" Fury informed Steve and Tony

Natasha moved defensively behind Tony at the mention of 'tests' but both he and Steve were preoccupied with Fury's statement to reassure her she'd be okay

"Take them home? Us?"

"Yes"

"But why?"

"Well they can't stay _here_"

"You want them at the tower?!"

"Well that _is_ where they live!"

"And you want _us_ to look after them?"

"Well... Yeah"

"Seriously? Me and Capsicle?"

"You got a better idea Stark?"

"Pretty much _anyone_ would be better than me!"

"You'll be fine. You'll have Rogers, and Pepper. We need all our staff working on reversing this. I need my agents back"

"We'll be fine Sir" Steve told him, before Tony could protest again

Hill returned with some clothes she hoped would fit the miniature agents, and Phil arrived with Dr. Montgomery who would be running the tests on the kids.

"Steve, why'd you agree to this? Last time this happened we were kids for _months_!" Tony hissed under his breath with Fury went to speak to the doctor.

"They need their friends right now Tony" Steve told him, gesturing to Natasha who was still positioning herself carefully behind Tony and away from the doctor, while Steve was being closely shadowed by Clint.


	9. Chapter 9

Clint and Natasha awkwardly changed into the clothing Maria had brought for them; Natasha ended up wearing a top as a dress because the pants were just too big to stay up, while Clint wore some female gym clothes, and although they were too big; they would do for now. Tony considered phoning Pepper so she could get some supplies in, but he really wanted to see her face if they just turned up with them like this...

The doctors ran their tests; it had taken both Steve and Tony's best efforts to keep them calm and compliant during the medical exam, well; mainly Natasha. Clint didn't seem to mind all that much and normally ended up being used as a demonstration so the doctor could inform Natasha of what exactly they'd be doing. She was rather reluctant to allow any medical tests to be performed and it took them a long time to talk her round.  
In the end they summarized the two children were relatively healthy, and after taking a few viles of blood they were free to leave.

"We're going to go home now, okay?" Steve told them gently.

"Who's home?" Clint asked sceptically.

"Ours" Steve smiled, gesturing between himself and Tony.

"Are you guys like, together?" Clint asked with a cheeky smile.

"God no!" Tony exclaimed "You'll meet my girlfriend when we get there"

"Why are we going there?" Natasha asked, breaking her long silence.

"It's safer" Tony told her, just as the security alarm went off again.

"Fury?" Steve asked down the coms, moving instinctively closer to the kids.

"Rogers, Stark; get them out of here. We have a breach"

They glanced at each other quickly before snapping into action.

"We have to get out of here, fast. Alright?" Steve told Clint and Natasha, who nodded in agreement; despite the fact neither were looking at him. They were both already working a way out of there; Clint's eyes had darted up towards the air vents, while Natasha was scanning the room for weapons; unfortunately, they were in short supply in the medical bay...

Steve reached up and pulled the vent cover off and lifted Clint in, he grabbed Natasha (who was less than impressed) and lifted her up too, before gesturing to Tony.

"I'll meet you at the tower" he informed him as Tony dragged over a chair to climb up to the vent; he drew the line at being picked up by Captain America.

"You're not coming with us?"

"There's no way I'll fit in there, just go. And don't lose them!"

Tony crawled hurriedly after Clint and Natasha, who moved swiftly and silently, and Tony struggled to keep up. Natasha had to shush him several times as his hands and knees made too much noise.

It seemed like they'd been crawling for ages when the kids paused in front of him;

"What are you-" Tony began, but stopped when two sets of eyes glared at him. Peering through the grate to the room below; he saw a group of shield agents being held hostage by several armed hydra agents;

"Tell us where the kids are and we'll allow you to live"

The shield agents were silent, refusing to answer. Tony saw Natasha glance guiltily to Clint, who wore an expression of quiet anger which looked so much like his older self it was unnerving.

"What do we do?" Clint whispered to Tony

"Keep going" he told him, feeling awful about leaving the agents, but he couldn't do much without his suit, and he definitely couldn't leave the kids alone and defenceless when hydra were after them...

As Clint slid forward, the grate (which apparently hadn't been fitted properly) fell through, taking Clint with it to the floor.

"Oh shit!" Tony exclaimed, informing Natasha to stay where she was while he jumped down beside Clint.

The hydra agents jumped into action immediately and lunged forward, Tony got in a good punch here and there, and Clint was a fairly good fighter for a ten year old. But they were outnumbered, the shield agents were tied up, and Tony could only watch in horror as one of the agents raised their guns and aimed it at the air ducts where Natasha was still hiding.

She jumped down from the vents, landing gracefully beside Tony just as Steve stormed in; taking out the guy with the gun and quickly dispatching the other hydra agents. He'd apparently picked up his shield on the way up here...

Steve moved to free the shield agents, while Tony looked the kids over; Clint was bruised and breathing heavily, while a trail of blood ran down Natasha's arm.

"Oh my God Nat are you shot?!" Tony asked dramatically

"It's fine" she insisted, pushing his hand away as he tried to stop the bleeding

"Natasha-"

"I've had worse. We need to keep moving"

"No, we're good. That was the last of them" Steve informed him, looking carefully at Clint's swollen eye "Maybe we should head back up to medical?"

"Yeah, and then we should _really_ get to the tower" Tony answered.


	10. Chapter 10

"I don't need to go to medical!" Natasha insisted.

"I really think you do" Tony said, gesturing to her blood soaked arm.

She took a step back but didn't take her eyes off Tony. They were the only two left in the room now; the shield agents had all cleared off to go back to their daily business, and Steve had taken Clint to get looked at. Tony wondered how he'd ended up watching the awkward one...

"Nat, come on. We need to get you stitched up and then we can go home"

She sighed, only now did Tony notice just how tired she looked. "How much longer is this going to last?" she asked, looking dejectedly at the floor.

"What do you mean?"

"This is a test right?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about"

"Don't lie to me. You work for Ivan; I just don't understand the point of this test. I'm sick of playing games, so please just tell me so I can go back and take my punishment for failing"

"Natasha, this isn't a test"  
She clearly didn't believe him, but Tony wasn't sure how to make her...  
"Natasha, would we have brought Clint; a civilian, into this dangerous situation if it were just a test?"

"Of course you would. The red room doesn't care for civilian lives"

"Okay, would we have let you get injured if this were just a test?"

"A gunshot wound barely qualifies as an injury... You know that"

"Would I be asking all these stupid questions if I honestly knew the answers?"

"Probably"

"I swear to you Natasha, and I know we have no right to ask you to trust us, but we are not part of the red room. This is not a test, and no one here is going to hurt you. You're safe; I just need you to trust me"

Tony watched as her bright green eyes carefully examined him. He knew she was a good judge of character; he just hoped she'd see he was telling the truth.

"Okay, I'll go with you to your home, but I don't want to go to medical"

At least that was some progress...

"Natasha, you have a gunshot wound. You might think it's nothing but to me it's a serious injury. So you're going to go to medical and you're going to go now!"

Tony shocked himself slightly at his words, he sounded just like Clint had when Natasha had refused to see the doctors over a broken wrist the previous month. Tony had watched as Clint ended up dragging her down there...

"No I – Ouch!" she shouted, swatting his hand away as he poked her arm.

"See" he said with a smirk. Maybe there was something to Barton's method...  
She was momentarily distracted looking at her arm, so Tony grabbed her and threw her over his shoulder, surprised at how little she weighed, he carried her all the way back to medical while she argued and protested.

Steve had taken Clint back to the infirmary, leaving Tony to try and talk Tasha round. Tony didn't know it; but after Clint he was probably the best to deal with Natasha when she was being irrational.

"So, your shield is real cool" Clint told him, walking beside Steve up to medical, openly admiring Captain America's shield he held in his hand.

"Thanks" Steve smiled. Seeing the young Clint Barton looking up to him like this was strange; the adult Clint would probably be embarrassed, he normally kept his feeling pretty close to his chest.

"Can I hold it?"

"After we get you checked out and safely back to the tower, okay?"

"Okay" he said excited, "race to the med bay!" he shouted, already setting off at a run. It took Steve slightly by surprise, but took off in a sprint just a second after Clint, of course Steve could have beat him easily; but he let the young boy win, just.

Clint was checked over by the doctors, and ended up needing a few stitched down his jaw line where one of the hydra agents had caught him with the butt of their gun, and an ice pack on his fist where his hand was swollen.

As they were finishing up they heard the shouting of a disgruntled Natasha as Tony carried her into the room. Placing her on the examination bed, he warned her to stay and receive a death glare in response.  
While the doctors stitched up her arm (and the graze from a bullet on her thigh that she had failed to mention), Tony cleaned up her blood off his arm and went to fetch her a clean top.

"I can't believe you carried Natasha Romanoff up to the medical bay and lived to tell the tale" Phil whispered to Tony when he turned up to check on them following the attack.

"Yeah well, she's a miniature Agent Romanoff, if she were fully grown I wouldn't have dared; I leave that to Barton!"

"We're all done here" Doctor Montgomery informed them, and the four of them were finally ready to leave shield and head back to Avengers Tower.


	11. Chapter 11

Natasha was silent the whole way back to the tower, whether that was by choice, or whether it was just she couldn't get a word in edgeways; Tony wasn't sure.  
Clint was more than compensating for her silence; talking none stop, asking 100s of questions and bouncing excitedly in his seat. Where Natasha had assumed this was a test which she would be punished for for failing; Clint seemed to have decided this was an adventure, and he was going to enjoy every moment! Steve just hoped some of his carefree childish attitude rubbed off on Natasha. This whole thing would be a lot easier on him and Tony if they were both a bit more relaxed and easy going...

When they finally reached the tower, Clint looked at it in awe, obviously amazed by its size and power. It was a long way from the circus in Iowa he'd come from. Even Natasha looked a little shocked that this was where they were staying, but she quickly shrugged it off when she noticed Tony watching her staring.

They rode the elevator up to the 63rd floor, and as the doors opened; Tony quickly remember Pepper. He had wanted to see her face when they turned up with the two kids, but never intended to actually spring it on her like this; he felt guilty at not giving her any notice.

"Jarvis, where's Pepper?"

"She is on your floor sir"

Natasha jumped at the AIs response, and Clint smirked at her defensive posture.

"Could you ask her to come down here please?"

"Right away sir"

"Who is that?" Clint asked

"Thats Jarvis; it's the computer system that runs the tower" Steve answered, purposely oversimplifying it.

"Oh he is so much more than that!" Tony started, not hiding the exasperated tome to his voice. But at the elevator had started it's decent so he stopped and shooed the other three into the back room. Clint and Steve got the message, but Natasha stood defiantly to watch until Steve came back to drag her out the way.

"Tony? What are you doing down here?" Pepper asked, strolling from the elevator with a handful of paperwork while scrolling through her company phone.

"Erm, I have something I need to tell you..."

"Oh Tony. What did you do now?" she asked an air of disappointment in her voice already.

"What? I didn't do anything! But this is important, and I know it's not exactly what you want to hear but-"

Tony stopped talking when he noticed Natasha peering back in the room, apparently having escaped from Steve and far too curious for her own good. Tony suspected she still didn't completely trust them; and this was just far too like secrets being kept from her in her eyes.

Pepper turned to follow his gaze, she froze as her pale blue eyes locked onto Natasha. Her jaw went slack and the paperwork fell from her hands, unable to form a coherent sentence; she looked helplessly to Tony who just shrugged apologetically.

Steve reappeared, with Clint trailing behind him; "Sorry Tony. She got away from me"

"S'alright, it's not me she sent catatonic"

Pepper looked from Natasha, to Clint, and back to Natasha again, her brain failing to comprehend what was happening right in front of her.  
Sure, this had happened before (well, sort of), but that time she'd had some warning; Coulson had tried to give her a summary of events before introducing her to the kids, this time it had just been dropped on her; and she had been wholly unprepared.

Her mouth opened and closed a few times, trying to form words but none came. Eventually tony pushed her down gently on the sofa and Steve handed her a glass of water.

"Is she okay?" Clint asked, not so subtly, to Steve as he followed him to the kitchen.

Natasha hadn't moved from the spot she'd frozen on when Pepper's eyes had first locked on her, her eyes were still locked on the older redhead, trying to read her; decide if she were friend or foe, ally or enemy. It made Tony a little uneasy, but Pepper didn't seem to mind. She was starting to regain her composure and smiled warmly at the little girl.

Natasha seemed to decide Pepper wasn't a threat and took a seat at the other end of the sofa, watching Steve and Clint who had started playing on some racing game on the brand new PlayStation 4 Tony had bought.

"Pepper, can I talk to you?" Tony asked quietly, glaring at Natasha to stay put. Steve changed the game to three player mode and handed Natasha a spare controller; she looked at it like she had no idea what she held in her hands. It was a little sad; an eight year old that could take apart and reassemble a gun in seconds with her eyes closed and still have time to shot you before you'd even comprehended the fact she had a gun; didn't know how to play a game. Clint took it upon himself to explain the buttons to her in the same way Steve had for him, while Tony and Pepper left on the elevator.

"Tony, what the hell?! Again?!"

"I know Pepper, and I'm sorry. But we had to bring them here"

"No Tony, I'm glad you brought them here. I just wish I'd had some warning"

"Also my fault, I got a bit distracted when we were attacked at shield"

"You were attacked?!"

"You didn't notice the bruising on Clint's face or the bullet hole in Natasha's arm?"

"Bullet hole?! Tony what on earth?"

"Pep, we don't know all the details. But Hydra did this; a way to weaken them and get rid of them once and for all I guess. Coulson says this is different to last time; they have less familiarity with the aspects of their adult lives. Natasha is still convinced this is all a test set up by the Red Room. She's difficult to get through to, but we're making some progress with Clint. At least, I hope we are"

"This is going to be tough"

"Yeah, I think it is. And I'm sorry to dump this on you again"

"Tony, I loved looking after you and the others when you were kids. those months were some of the fondest of my life. Don't be sorry, let's just keep them safe"

Tony smiled gratefully and wrapped his arms round the waist of the woman he loved. His lips found hers and for a moment they were completely lost in each other.  
Pepper eventually pulled away, taking a pause for breath and smiling at Tony. "We need to get supplies again don't we?"

"Yeah, they have nothing that fits; they haven't even got any shoes on"

"Okay. Tomorrow; we go shopping!"

Tony didn't like the glint in Pepper's eye as she said that. He followed her back to the elevator and as they emerged on the 63rd floor they heard Clint exclaiming; "How did you win?! You don't even know how to play!" as Natasha smiled smugly from her corner of the sofa.


	12. Chapter 12

Natasha and Clint each had a bedroom set up for them, but judging by their faces; they each felt more comfortable when Steve dragged one of the beds through so they could sleep in the same room.  
Severely lacking on kids supplies; Natasha was given one of Pepper's tops to sleep in, and Clint had to deal with some workout clothes which belonged to (adult) Natasha. The two of them would be sleeping in one of the spare rooms on Tony and Pepper's floor; Tony had suggested letting them stay in their own rooms, but Pepper and Steve had quickly decided that could be disastrous as none of them knew quite how many weapons were stashed around those floors.

The next morning (if you can call 4am morning) Tony was woken when Jarvis informed him the door to the balcony had been opened.

Panicking, he sprinted from his bed and down the hallway to find it was just Natasha who'd gone to stand outside.

He approached her, making purposeful noises so as not to startle her, and stood by her side while she watched the city. Even Pepper's t-shirt drowned her.  
Her long hair blew in the breeze and she rested her chin on her arms, which were leaning on the railings around the balcony.

"Couldn't sleep?" Tony asked, when it became apparent she wasn't going to start a conversation anytime soon

She just shrugged. "If I ask you a question, will you be honest?"

"I'll try"

"What year is it?"

"2014. What year do you think it is?"

"1993"

"Sorry kid"

"Do you know me, the future me? Am I still alive in 2014?"

"Yes I know you; you're one of my best friends"

"Am I a good person?" this question seemed to be the most important; the vital piece answer she wanted. Finally looking up to him, Tony could see the impatience in her eyes as she waited

"You're a hero" he told her with a gentle smile. Her face softened and relief flickered over her face. "You want to go back inside? It's a bit chilly"

She followed him back inside and took a seat on the sofa beside him

"Clint told me to enjoy my time here, before you send us back" it wasn't phrased as a question, but Tony gave himself some credit that he could read Natasha rather well and knew it was something that has been bothering her since this whole thing began.

"What do you mean?"

"He said it's like when he used to be fostered, they always sent him back"

"Natasha, this isn't like that, and it's not a test either. It's a... It's like a rescue. You and Clint are going to stay here with us, and we're going to keep you safe until we figure out how to change you both back into adults. Okay?"

She nodded and yawned, settling back into the sofa after Tony had seemingly put her mind at ease. He wondered how long it had been since she'd had a proper night's sleep...

Two and a half hours later Pepper woke to an empty bed. Wondering round their floor of the tower she found him asleep on the sofa; head back resting against the pillow behind him, and his mouth open. He had an arm draped round Natasha's shoulders as she slept soundly; her head rested comfortably on his chest and she was curled up in an attempt to stay warm.

"Jarvis, can you capture a picture of this for me?" she asked, smiling at her boyfriend

"Right away Miss Potts"

She grabbed a spare blanket; draping it over the pair. Sweeping Natasha's hair from her face and kissing Tony gently on the cheek before she left to ring work; she'd definitely need a few days off...


	13. Chapter 13

The next morning after breakfast Steve and Tony sat the two miniature Shield Agents down to explain things properly.  
Judging from his conversation with her last night; Tony guessed Natasha had figured most of it out, but telling them together just made sense; they'd get the same information and could ask any questions they wanted. Once this had been dealt with, they were to go shopping with Pepper to get some clothes.

"How much do you guys remember?" Tony asked them. The two kids were sat on the sofa, facing Tony who was sat opposite on the table. Steve was stood by his side  
and Pepper was milling about in the background, attempting to look like she wasn't listening while tidying up.

"We ain't stupid" Clint told him, sounding somewhat defensive

"We never said you were. We just want to make sure we're all on the same page"

Clint looked the two men over before turning to look at Natasha. She'd been staring intently at her feet which were curled up next to her on the couch. She hadn't said much since she'd woken up.

"Tasha said its 2014?" Clint asked. Natasha's eyes flickered up at the nickname

"It is" Tony confirmed.

"How'd I get here? It was 1984 last I checked"

"Look, I know what it's like to wake up in a different time. But I need you to believe us when we tell you that you and Natasha are our friends, here in 2014. Something happened and turned you back into children, but we're going to work really hard to get you back"

Clint looked at him, doubting his words; "Prove it?"

The two men looked at each other thinking how to go about this, before it clicked;  
"Jarvis, pull up the security footage from Romanoff and Barton's shield files?"

"Right away sir"

The TV flickered to life behind Tony; he quickly moved out of the way and watched as the images of Clint and Natasha firing their respective weapons played on the screen.

"T-thats us" Clint stuttered, it wasn't a question though. He knew it was the truth.

"Who're we fighting?" Natasha asked, sounding concerned. Tony figured she was at a stage in her training where she was very aware of what was right and wrong. She wanted to be a good person; even through everything the Red Room forced her to do, she'd kept ahold of herself to know who she wanted to be; before the Red Room broke her down and conditioned her into thinking they were the good guys, and whatever they told her was right.

"The bad guys. I told you you're a hero"

Natasha's green eyes shot a thankful look in Tony's direction and a small smile tugged at her mouth; the first real smile he'd seen from her in her child-state.

"Here" Pepper told them, passing them a photograph of the Avenger's team and Phil.

"That's you!" Clint informed Steve, pointing at Captain America. Steve nodded;

"And that is Tony" he pointed his own finger to show them Iron Man on the photo.

"Wow that's cool!" Clint gushed, leaning closer to Natasha to show her the photo.

"Is he part of the team?" Clint asked, pointing to Coulson with a guilty expression on his face

"Sort of, he's our handler"

"I hit him with a chair..."

"We know, he'll forgive you though. You two are his favourites, maybe apart from Cap here" Tony said, clapping Steve on the back.

"You guys got any questions?" Steve asked as Natasha examined the photo carefully

Both kids shook their head, both seeming happy with the explanation he and Tony had given them. Thankfully. He really didn't know how Pepper, Coulson and Hill had coped with the six of them when they'd all been in this position.

"Right okay, let's go get you some clothes" Pepper told them. The two kids climbed from where they sat. Clint ran back to the room where they'd slept to get changed  
into his makeshift clothes, while Natasha walked slowly towards Pepper to hand back the picture.

"You can keep that if you want" she told her gently, reading her well after years of living with Natasha

"Thank you"


	14. Chapter 14

_Huge thanks to everyone who has followed, favourited and reviewed this story! Hope you enjoy the latest chapter! ~ F_

* * *

Steve called by shield while Tony and Pepper took the kids to the mall. He was glad not to have to wonder round the hundreds of stores Pepper no doubt planned to visit.

"How're things going?" Coulson asked on seeing Captain America enter

"As well as can be expected. We told them the truth. Well, most of it. But they're coping well"

"Even Natasha?"

"Even Natasha" Steve smiled. "She seems oddly trusting of Tony"

Coulson laughed. He'd learned to always expect the unexpected where his agents were involved, and he guessed that should still apply now they were children again.

"Clint wanted me pass on his apologies for hitting you with a chair"

"It's alright; he's done much worse in the past"

"Your guys making any progress?"

At that moment Fury and Hill entered, both nodding a greeting to Steve

"Medical are still running several tests on the blood taken from Romanoff and Barton, and none of the Hydra agents who survived the attack are talking. Yet." Fury informed him, a look in his eye which told Steve he had nowhere near finished with them; he wouldn't give up until he got some answers.

At the mall Tony had his work cut out for him as Clint ran here, there and everywhere; darting through the crowds that kids had more energy than anyone Tony had ever met.  
Clint seemed to have decided he would enjoy his time in the future and didn't want to waste a moment. He was as excited and giddy as any normal 10 year old kid might be on Christmas day. They lost him more than once, and Tony often found himself running off after him. It was only when Clint decided to run down the up escalator did Tony decide he was on his own, taking the correct escalator and meeting him at the bottom with a stern look on his face.

Natasha was a different story. The bustling crowds and busy mall seemed to intimidate her. It didn't pass Tony and Pepper's attention that she automatically searched for the nearest exit wherever she went, and kept herself altert and ready to bolt if she needed, keeping her back to a wall where possible and reacting instantly if someone moved too quickly or in her direction.

Tony dragged Clint into the mens changing room to get him to try on some of the clothes, while Pepper took Natasha to the womens.

"Why do I need all these clothes?"

"You've got to wear something. Don't you have clothes at home?"

"I have a training suit"

"What do you wear when you're not training?"

"I'm always training"

Pepper realised too late that it was probably not the wisest thing to ask Natasha. The last time she'd been de-aged Natasha had become incredibly close to Pepper; they had a close bond that had carried over when she'd been turned back into an adult again. But last time this had happened Natasha had been younger, at only five years old she'd been in the Red Room just over a year. Now she was eight, they'd obviously stepped up her training and she was having more difficulty settling into normal life. Well, as normal as life around Avengers Tower ever got...

"You don't have to train while you're here. You get to have a normal life for a while"

"I don't know how to do that"

Pepper's heart almost broke looking into Natasha's confused expression. Looking at the young version of her best friend; bandages covering her recently acquired bullet wounds on her leg and arm, Pepper vowed once again to give her and Clint the childhood they deserved.

When they exited the changing rooms they found Clint and Tony waiting for them.

"Tasha come look at this!" Clint shouted excitedly, grabbing her hand and dragging her off.

"You alright Pepper?" Tony asked, concerned

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine"

"Are you sure?" Tony asked, wiping a stray tear from her face

She nodded, trying as much to convince herself as Tony; "It's just. I don't know how someone survives a childhood like that"

"She's strong. They both are" he told her, taking her hand in his and giving it an encouraging squeeze.

Clint and Natasha suddenly appeared back in front of them, Clint clutching two 'Avengers' themed tops and asking enthusiastically if they could get those too. Natasha looked unsure but visibly relaxed when Tony nodded happily.

Following the clothing store, they headed to the food court for lunch.

"We get new clothes AND to eat out?! This is awesome!" Clint eager said, running off to find a free table.

"But we ate this morning" Natasha stated, baffled

"Yes" Tony confirmed, confused

She seemed to read he wasn't sure what she was trying to ask so she brushed it off and went with it. It would make a nice change; at the Red Room meals were infrequent and often forgotten; it could be days between food and you'd never know if you'd get your next meal before you were too weak to survive the training.

Following food, rather than heading home as planned Tony insisted they take the kids to the toy shop, and Pepper hastily agreed.

Natasha was once again puzzled at being treated so well, while Clint continued to be as excitable and giddy as he had been all day; he showed no signs of exhaustion as Tony hoped he would.  
Chasing him round the store was a task in itself and Tony had a hard job of narrowing down his choices of toys to a number that would actually fit in the car. Natasha watched Clint with quiet intrigue; far more interested in his behaviour than any of the toys and games on the shelves.

While Tony tried unsuccessfully to persuade Clint a nerf gun was perhaps not the best choice of toy, Pepper took Natasha next door to the books shop. She seemed much happier at the prospect of spending time in here.

"You can pick a few books and then we'll go home" Pepper told her smiling, before going over to pick up a few books she thought Clint might like, and grabbing a few DVDs as well.

Tony and Clint appeared in the book store almost 20 minutes later, arms laden with bags from the toy store.

"How much did you buy?!" Pepper asked, taking in the sheer number of bags in her boyfriends arms.

"The kids persuasive"

Clint wondered up isle after isle before he came across Natasha. She was sat on the floor, cross legged, reading a Russian history book

"What are you looking for?" he asked, taking a seat beside her as she flicked through the pages

"I was just wondering... What happened to them. If anyone knew..."

"No one knows Natasha" Tony told her, having turned to corner just in time to hear her last statement. "They were highly covert, to most people; the Red Room just doesn't exist"

"Are they still- do they still exist?"

"No. Not for the past 10 years now, you took care of that; both of you"

Tony watched the relief overtake her features as she smiled at Clint; a true, smile overtaking her whole face. Clint didn't understand what had just happened, but he sensed the change in the young red-headed girl and returned the smile, taking her hand and helping her to her feet once she'd quickly returned the book to the shelf.

They left after Pepper recommended the Harry Potter books to Natasha after struggled to choose anything for herself. Clint go the Hunger Games trilogy and they both agreed they'd swap once they were finished.

Tony snuck in a few of the latest Avenger comic books without Pepper noticing.

Hundreds of dollars, 2 close calls with the paparazzi, and 7 hours later; the four of them made their way back to the tower.


	15. Chapter 15

"How'd it go at the mall?" Steve greeted them, watching in slight disbelief at the amount of shopping bags the four of them carried

"Clint, Natasha; will you guys get the other bags while me and Pepper talk to Steve?"

It was a test Tony had purposely set up, to see if Natasha would leave them alone long enough to talk. After a moments deliberation, Natasha followed Clint back to the elevator and Tony internally celebrated a victory; progress.

"More bags?!" Steve asked, shocked

Tony ignored him and moved on to more important issues; "What did Shield have to say?"

"Nothing much; they're still working on the bloods and Hydra haven't cracked yet. Though we didn't really leave them much to work with; only 3 Hydra agents survived the attack, and one died shortly after following complications from a ruptured spleen"

"Great"

"Yeah, so I'm assuming you got enough clothes judging by the amount of shopping you brought back"

"Oh Steve, don't be fooled. They're all bags from the toy shop" Pepper told him, heading towards the coffee machine. Tony grinned and Steve shook his head.

The kids reappeared and the remaining bags were added to the others.

"I think we're going to have to be careful out and about as well. The paparazzi almost made us twice today" Pepper warned as Clint and Natasha dug through the bags in search of something in particular. (Clint was after his bow and arrows while Natasha wanted her new books)

Steve and Tony instead convinced the kids to join them in a game of risk (which Tony had insisted on buying at the store as it had been one of his childhood favourites) while Pepper started unpacking the rest of the shopping.

Entering the kids bedroom to find somewhere to put their new clothes, she smiled when she saw the photo she'd given to Natasha placed by her bedside.

Unpacking the toys was less fun. Tony needed teaching what is classed as 'appropriate' for two mini-assassins. He'd bought all sorts, probably largely influenced by Clint. Nerf guns, walkie talkies, binoculars, a plastic bow and arrow set, a home laser tag set, night vision goggles... He'd got assassin's creed and various shooting/spy games for the PS4 and then he'd gone overboard buying scooters, roller blades, board games, card sets, a dart board... How they'd even got all of this in the car was beyond her.  
Pepper sighed; she suspected most of this stuff was Tony's idea anyway...

After Natasha successfully beat the others at a game of Risk (and then a game of Rummikub _and_ Clue); Pepper called an end to game night because Clint was sulking. They had dinner and watched one of the new DVDs together before Clint and Natasha went to bed with their new books.

"They seem to have settled in really well" Steve observed as the two children walked to their bedroom, chatting away down the hall.

"Thanks for all your help Pepper" he added a few minutes later, watching the woman smiling fondly at the security footage of the kids in their room which Jarvis was displaying for them on Tony's tablet. Clint had fallen almost instantly asleep, barely having finished the first page of his book. They watched as Natasha climbed from her bed to pull his comforter up over him and took his book from his slackened grip. Turning off the light, she curled back into her own bed, reading her own book by torch light; not wanting to disturb the peaceful sleep Clint was enjoying.

She wouldn't let herself sleep yet, she was too scared the nightmares would return as they did most nights. Or even worse; that when she woke up, she wouldn't be here in the tower; safe, and with friends, she feared she'd wake up back there, where each day was a fight for survival. She didn't ever want to go back there.

"You know, you surprised me today Tony. You're better with kids than I'd ever have imagined" Pepper told her boyfriend, leaning into his embrace once she was happy the kids had settled.

"Yeah well, don't get any ideas" he warned her, kissing her on the top of the head as she leant on his shoulder.

"Well, goodnight" Steve excused himself from Tony and Pepper's floor for an early night. Something told him that tomorrow would be a long day.


	16. Chapter 16

The next morning the kids got up early, and as such; Tony's hope of a lie in went out the window.  
He heard a crash from the kitchen, panicked Hydra had somehow broken in, and ran down the hallway in nothing more than his boxer shorts. As it turned out, it was nothing more sinister than Clint dropping the plates he'd been trying to get out of the cupboard and Natasha had burning the toast.

After cleaning up their mess, he went to take a shower and get dressed while Pepper kept an eye on them.  
Steve joined them shortly later and Clint asked for a rematch of Clue.

Part-way through the game (just as Natasha was about to win, again) Jarvis interrupted;

"Sir, Agent Coulson is on the phone. He says it's urgent"

"Hold the line Jarvs, I'll take this in private" he said, smiling reassuringly at Natasha as she glanced nervously in his direction, before leaving the four of them to continue with the game.

"What is it Phil?"

"There anyway you can bring the kids back down to medical?"

"What? Why?"

"There were some... anomalies with the blood results; they need another sample to run some more tests"

"They're just starting to settle in, can't I take some blood here and bring it down to you? I don't want to upset them more than necessary"

"Sure, but make it fast?"

Half an hour later; Tony and Pepper were on their way back to Shield with several vials of Clint and Natasha's blood, while Steve opted to stay at the tower and try to burn off some of their energy.

They played on the wii for a while before heading down to the gym.

Steve set them both up on treadmills, before they attempted the climbing wall. Clint asked if they could have a go on the sparring matt, but Steve caught Natasha's sly grin and opted to say no to that one; instead he hung two punching bags next to each other. When Clint saw Natasha's technique of hitting and kicking the bag he was glad Steve had said no to a spar.

Next, Steve went about teaching Clint how to do pull ups while Natasha watched. She had no interest in joining them so she went over the sparring matt and started to dance. Steve watched in amazement as she twirled and leapt; dancing the perfect ballet even in the absence of music. Steve always knew Natasha liked to dance, but he'd never actually seen her. He didn't realise just how good she was. Clint climbed up to perch on the bar in order to watch too, but Natasha froze and blushed when she realised all eyes were on her.

"Go on" Steve encouraged, smiling and turning to continue teaching Clint. Steve quietly asked Jarvis to play some music, and he was happy to see Natasha had gone back to her performance now no one was watching; a smile of pure content worn on her face as she picked up her pace.

Natasha, Clint and even Steve were tired, sweaty and hungry by now; so they headed back to Tony's floor for some dinner.

They were halfway through their spaghetti when Pepper and Tony got home. Ah hour later, when Clint and Natasha were playing darts; Steve got his chance to ask them what had happened at Shield;

"They got any news yet?"

"No, they just said there were some _'strange'_ readings from the blood samples and wanted to rerun the tests, as well as some additional ones. They weren't big on the talking"

Over the next two days they heard nothing from Shield, at least not officially. Phil let them know they were still looking into the blood work, but they got no more details than that.

The time passes quickly as Clint and Natasha settled in even more at the tower; Pepper taught them to bake, they had regular game sessions; whether it be board games, competing on the wii, or playing on the playstation. Tony got into trouble when he let them race on their roller blades around the tower which resulted in a broken television. They played laser tag, which Steve was sure Tony enjoyed just as much as the kids, and Natasha finished all seven of her Harry Potter books. She continued to dance, while Clint continued to use the gym and they steadily made their way through all the kid-friendly DVDs Tony had.

Tony and Pepper's floor had become a safety hazard. There were roller blades and scooters, plastic guns, goggles and controllers, a radio controlled car, discarded clothes, books and jigsaw pieces scattered about the floor. The five of them spent the whole morning tidying.

That afternoon Pepper went back into work for a few hours to catch up on some paperwork, leaving Steve and Tony strict instructions that under no circumstances, was she to return to a mess.

Tony had finally received the blueprints for the machine Shield though Hydra might have used to revert their resident assassins into children, and was examining them in his lab.

Steve excused himself from watching Frozen with Clint and Natasha in order to take a phone call from Agent Hill.

"Hey Tasha, wanna go play?"

"No, I like this film!"

"Yeah I know, we've watched it nine times!" he groaned

"Shush!"

Natasha was singing along to 'Let it Go' while Clint snuck off to find his bow and arrow set. Just as the song finished, a plastic arrow with a suction cup attached stuck to the center of the TV, and a second latter one hit Natasha in the side of the head.

"Clint!"

"Come on Tasha, come play"

"No!"

Another arrow to the head was all it took for Natasha to grab her nerf gun and shoot Clint rapidly; all five shots hitting him in his forehead.

"You're on" he grinned at her, shooting another arrow which would have hit her right in the face had she not already dove behind the sofa. They shot and ducked, rolling across the floor in order to retrieve their spent ammo and keeping count of the amount of hits they's got in. Natasha was in the lead, but only just.

The two were at battle with one another for about ten minutes before Tony came back into the room. Natasha hit him twice with the nerf gun and Clint managed to stick one of his suction arrows to his forehead before he'd even fully emerged from the elevator.

"Right then" he said, strolling to the kitchen area. Clint and Natasha eyed each other suspiciously from their hiding place under the table, and were both taken by surprise when Tony soaked them with a water gun.

They screamed and shrieked as cold water soaked their hair and clothes, scrambling out from beneath the table while shooting their own weapons.

Steve ran back into the room, only to get soaked and pelted too, before leaving again;  
"Sorry Hill. No it's nothing; just an impromptu water fight"

Pepper arrived back a few minutes later, glaring at the three of them until they all muttered their apologies. As Clint and Natasha set about collecting their projectiles, Tony couldn't resist shooting Pepper with the water gun... Just once.


	17. Chapter 17

"What did Hill have to say?" Pepper asked as Tony and the kids went to get dried up. (Pepper had snatched the water gun from Tony's grasp and made him sorry he'd ever tried to soak her)

"They still don't have much. The second blood tests came back abnormal, and they're still waiting on a few results. They haven't worked out what any of it means yet"

"No luck getting the Hydra agents to talk?"

"Not yet, but Hill thinks they're getting closer"

Clint and Natasha ran back into the room, putting a swift end to the conversation

"Clint, those pants are too big, they're falling down"

"They're all like that!" he insisted, hitching them back up and turning on the TV

She sighed; he was just too lazy to go get changed again and wanted to play with Steve on a racing game.

She passed Natasha the glass she was trying to reach from the cupboard and went to speak to Tony.

"You're a big kid you know" she told him, picking up his soaked jeans from the floor and throwing them at him

"We were just having some fun"

"I know" she smiled; "I love seeing you with them" she told him fondly while getting changed herself. "I thought you moved the glasses down so the kids could reach them?"

"I did"

"No you didn't"

"I did, I moved them the other day"

"Well Tasha can't-"

A knock at the door interrupted them

"Hello?" Pepper called, pulling her hair back into a simple ponytail

"I'm going to head to the store and get some bits, there anything you need?" Steve called

"Clint wanted some apple juice" Tony shouted back

"Right, see you later"

"You know what Pepper?" Tony asked, quietly, crawling across their bed to sit beside her

"I know where you think this is heading Tony Stark, but not now"

"It's been so long since we've been alone. Can't the terrible twosome stay with Steve for just one night?"

"Tony-"

"We could go out for a nice meal, just the two of us" he asked, pleadingly

There was suddenly a yell from the other room and Tony sighed; "See, we need some time alone" he told her, getting up to go and see what had happened.

He found Clint sat at the table, clutching his face and crying. Natasha was nowhere to be seen, but her bowl of abandoned ice cream sat untouched next to Clint's.

"Clint, what happened?" Tony asked gently, pulling his hand down and away from his face to reveal a horribly swollen black eye

Clint was too distraught to talk; his sobbing leaving him incoherent and gasping for breath.

At the appearance of Pepper in the room, Tony turned his attention to the missing piece;

"Natasha!" he called, looking around the open plan living space while Pepper grabbed some ice for Clint's face.

He looked everywhere he could think of, visiting the gym and the roof before returning to his floor of the tower.

"Natasha, sweetheart; you've really got to come out now! This isn't funny anymore!"

Tony thought it was odd calling her 'sweetheart', though it had become a regular occurrence recently. He'd have to get out of the habit quickly once they were returned to adults; If he ever slipped up and called Natasha a sweetheart once she'd been re-aged; the consequences could be dire!

He eventually found her huddled in the back of her closet. It was pitch black and she sat hugging her knees up to her chest, resting her chin on them as she watched Tony awkwardly climb in to sit in the closet beside her.

"You going to tell me what happened?" he asked. Stern, but gentle.

"It wasn't me"

"I never said it was"

Her green eyes looked up to his, reading him carefully for any tricks or games. Tony could see she'd been crying and kept his expression neutral.  
There had been no one else in the room with them, and it wasn't beyond Natasha's skill level to give a young boy a black eye, but then; Natasha and Clint got along great (when she wasn't beating him at games), and since that initial misunderstanding at Shield, Natasha hadn't been violent once...

"I don't know what happened. But it wasn't me"

"Then why'd you run away?"

"I was scared"

"Scared of what?"

"That you wouldn't believe me. That I'd get them blame and then I'd be... I'd-"

"Natasha, it wasn't you. So it's fine. But even if you did do something wrong; that's okay too. You don't need to be afraid while you're here, okay?"

She nodded, but she looked doubtful.

"Is Clint okay?" she asked tentatively

"Let's go see"

Clint was lay on the sofa clutching an ice pack over his swollen eye and cheek. Two empty bowls of ice cream were beside him while he watched The Incredibles on the TV

"Tasha! Come watch this with me?" he asked hopefully, placing the ice pack on the floor. His eye looked terrible; black bruising spread across his face. She looked hesitantly towards Tony who nodded and gave her a gentle push, before he joined Pepper in the kitchen.

"You find out what happened?" Tony asked quietly

"No, he said it just hurt all of a sudden"

"Natasha said he just screamed and then it was bruised... No idea why. I'm going to check the footage Jarvis got before I mention it to Shield, you okay here?"

"Yeah" she nodded, joining Clint and Natasha on the couch with a cup of hot cocoa for them both.

In his lab Tony watched the footage over and over; both kids had been right in that suddenly, out of nowhere Clint's eye bruised and swelled. He cried out, and Natasha fled.

He explained the situation to Phil over the phone, and then again to Hill and finally to Fury;

"That may go some way to explaining what we're seeing here. You and Rogers need to bring them back down here ASAP. The situation just got upgraded"


	18. Chapter 18

_Please note, chapter 2 is also an additional chapter I have just uploaded :) Hope you enjoy! ~ F_

_Ps. This story is about to get a whole lot darker, mentions of child abuse, childhood injuries, references to Natasha's treatment in the Red Room..._

* * *

Tony walked back into the lounge to find the film had finished. Pepper was in the kitchen with Steve making dinner while Natasha was lay with her head in Clint's lap; reading a book out loud for him to listen to.

Pepper had filled Steve in and they were both waiting for Tony to let them know what Shield had said.

Tony glanced back to the two children on the sofa, Clint was gently playing with Natasha's long hair but she had stopped reading now, waiting to listen to Tony

"We need to go back to Shield" he announced to the four people all eagerly awaiting an update

"Why, what's wrong?" Natasha asked, abruptly sitting up and startling Clint

"They just want to have a look at Clint, make sure he's okay and run a few more tests on you both"

"They still don't know what's wrong?" Steve asked

"I didn't get the full story" Tony answered simply. There was clearly more to be said, but not while Clint and Natasha were present.

"Come on, it's cold outside. Let's go get some sweaters for you two" Pepper told them, leading the two kids down the hallway.

The panic in Natasha's eyes made Tony feel instantly guilty

"Tony, what's going on?" Steve asked quietly

"I'm not sure. Shield said they'd upgraded the situation; they should have a more detailed explanation when we get there"

"Upgraded? But it was already classified as a Category 5, I didn't think there was anything higher?"

"I guess there is..."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The five of them arrived at Shield HQ shortly after and headed straight to medical. There were several doctors and scientists milling around, as well as a familiar face.

"Bruce? When did you get back?" Tony asked, approaching his friend who was playing with a new piece of equipment Shield had just brought in.

"Oh hi Tony, I just got back yesterday. Fury asked me to come in and-"

His speech faltered as he caught sight of the small red-haired girl stood silently beside Tony and looking around, only partially concealing the fear she was feeling. She didn't like doctors, didn't trust the medical tests; ever since the Red Room had opened up her brain and had a play...

His gaze wondered over to Steve and the short blond boy following him round like a shadow

"Okay, so this is weird"

"You kind of get used to it" Tony smiled at him

"We need to take the children to run some tests now" Doctor Montgomery informed them, causing Natasha to shift ever so slightly towards Tony. He rested his hand on her shoulder to calm her, the last thing they needed right now was for her to freak out

A medical gown was passed to each of the kids, and Pepper took Natasha off to help her change.

Clint quickly changed and had his eye looked over by the medical staff; it was a pretty severe black eye but no they were satisfied no major damage was done.

They started on his tests while Natasha was getting changed; they took his obs and a swap of cells from his cheek. They did body scans, took more blood, measured and weighed him, and finally took some X-rays.

Pepper walked down the hall towards the women's changing rooms with Natasha; not that she needed help getting dressed, but Pepper knew how much she feared the doctors and felt she could use some company.

Pepper noticed the bruises straight away; they ran down her back and across her stomach, down her legs and up her chest; black and blue marks everywhere but her face. Pepper wasn't sure what upset her more; the fact someone had actually done this to her, or the fact she hadn't thought it important enough to even mention. Every movement must hurt like hell, and even after seeing what happened to Clint; she hadn't told Tony or herself about her injuries.

Natasha quickly pulled the hospital gown over her battered body, happy it covered the worse of the bruising before following Pepper back down the hallway.

She underwent the same examinations as Clint had while Bruce looked over the data the machines were compiling.

"You get anywhere with the blueprints?" Hill asked Tony

"Not really, it's way more advanced than anything I've seen, possibly from another planet, but I'm not sure. I could probably get further if I had the actual tech rather than just the blueprints" he hinted

"I'm afraid that can't happen, the machine was destroyed after it was used"

"There's nothing left?

"Nothing at all"

"Dammit"

"Tony, can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure Pep, what is it?"

"You need to talk to Natasha"

"What, why?"

"She's covered in bruises, literally covered. You need to find out if she has any more injuries she's not told us about, you need to let her know that she can tell us if she's hurt"

"Why me? Why didn't you-"

"Because she trusts you the most, and this is too important for her to not listen to. Please?"

"Okay, I'll have a word when medical have finished"

Tony did as he promised, and Natasha promised she'd tell them from now on if she was hurt. Following the scans they discovered she had two fractured ribs and the doctors were amazed she'd been able to hide it; she must be in agony.

Pepper and Maria took the two children down to the canteen to get some ice cream with Bruce and Tony talked science and the doctors analysed the findings.

"This just doesn't make any sense"

"What doesn't Banner?" Fury asked, desperate for answers

"Their cells are in a state of flux; the lengthening telomeres tell me they're getting younger, but sometimes it's rapid, like they're losing two or three days a minute, other times it's much slower, but sometimes it's static, like they're frozen"

"So we were right? They're still de-aging?"

"Yes, but there's no way to estimate how fast. There's no pattern or reason I can see as to the speed they're regressing"

"But, it doesn't make sense" Tony added, suddenly joining the conversation

"What's up now Stark?"

"They're basically going back in time right?"

The two men, and several other people listening in nodded

"But they remember what happened yesterday, when they were technically older. Shouldn't they forget?"

"I guess so..."

"And their injuries, we're assuming Clint got hit and developed a black eye in the past, which is why he has one now, but it appeared suddenly, like he'd just been hit again. Shouldn't it have developed slowly, over the course of at least a few days; as in the opposite of it healing..?"

"I see your point"

"So they're de-aging, but still progressing forward..?"

"This whole thing is messing with my head" Fury declared, rubbing his temples to try and prevent the oncoming migraine

"What I'm more concerned with, is what happens when they reach zero?" Bruce asked quietly


	19. Chapter 19

Steve, Tony, Pepper, Clint and Natasha were left waiting in one of the conference rooms while the data was analysed, information was colated and blood tests were processed.

"Okay; Clint, Natasha. What we need you to do is think really hard, and write down every time you were hurt or injured when you were younger, okay?" Dr. Montgomery asked

The two kids stared at her like she was crazy

"This is really important" she emphasised, but they just looked at her and didn't make a move towards the pens and paper on the table. Dr Montgomery was chosen to lead on this because both Clint and Natasha's adult selves liked her; which was a lot seeing as they both hated doctors, however it seems in their child forms, they didn't quite have the same trust in her.

She looked to the three adults, who nodded their agreement to help before she turned and left the room.

Steve tackled Clint, who had figured out what was going on;

"You need to know because we're gonna get hurt again don't you?"

Steve opted for the truth, there was no point in lying, and at the end of the day; this was still Clint Barton; his friend and teammate.

"Yeah buddy, but we're working on fixing that, alright?"

Clint nodded and took the pen, scrawling a few notes down before sitting back in his seat. Shield had Clint's medical file, which was almost complete anyway, they knew most of what was to come, but coming from an abusive family meant it was quite possible most of his injuries, especially when he was younger, were hidden and disguised.

Tony and Pepper spoke to Natasha, despite them both knowing she had figured it all out too.

Her medical file was significantly less complete than Clint's, infact they had virtually nothing from when she was Natalia Romanova; those files having been long lost or destroyed.

"Natasha-"

"I can't"

"Why not?"

"Because I don't know, I don't remember"

Tony glanced uneasily at Pepper, who was knelt on the floor beside Natasha

"You can't remember anything?"

"I can remember, but I don't know what is real and what's made up..."

"This just got a whole lot harder" Tony whispered to Pepper

"Have I mentioned how much I hate the Red Room?" she responded quietly

"Not in the last 60 seconds..."

They managed to get a few things scribbled down from Natasha, but she, like her adult self, seemed reluctant to talk about her past. And for the first time; Tony understood why.

Most of what they'd gotten out of her were training accidents, and injuries obtained from the other girls, but they suspected there was a lot more she wasn't saying. Both Tony and Pepper knew she was tortured as part of her upbringing in the Red Room, and they dreaded the day they'd have to deal with that.

Once they'd handed in their notes to the doctors they were allowed to leave, the kids got changed back into their clothes and Steve and Pepper took them back to the tower while Tony stayed to work with Bruce.

Pepper and Steve found themselves constantly reassuring Clint and Natasha that they'd be fine, they they'd find a solution and they'd fix it; but it was more for their own sake than the kids.

"Do you think they'll fix us before we get real little? Like babies?" Clint asked, long after they'd gone to bed. Tony still hadn't come home and neither of them could sleep.

"I think they'll try" Natasha answered honestly, gazing at the photo Pepper had given her on the first day. Natasha looked at the way her adult stood leaning into Clint, content and happy; Clint's adult form had his arm over her shoulder and was smiling at her. They both looked comfortable, surrounded by their friends; the team looked happy and Natasha fell asleep hoping they could be happy like that again.


	20. Chapter 20

_Just another reminder that this fic does carry trigger warnings for child abuse, childhood injuries, etc etc. But I;m sure you've noticed that by now... ~ F_

* * *

Tony climbed into bed later that night (well, morning; it was gone 4am) after going over the data with Bruce in the lab, desperately trying to find a cure. They were painfully aware that this problem had a ticking clock; if they didn't act fast enough Clint and Natasha would be de-aged out of existence.

He scooted in closer to Pepper, who turned in his arms. He was surprised to find her awake at this hour

"I don't think I can do it Tony" she admitted in a whisper, she looked like she'd been crying

"Do what Pepper?" he asked, suddenly concerned

"Watch them, watch them go through all that again; they had horrific childhoods, and I don't think I can sit here while they're hurt and beaten and in pain and just do nothing"

"You're not doing nothing Pepper, you're here to help them, and comfort them. They're not alone this time Pepper, and it's important they know that"

"They're just so small..." a tear rolled down Pepper's cheek, and Tony realised just how hard this must be on her. She'd cared for them in a similar situation before, but the circumstances were very different. Last time they'd been de-aged they'd arrived injured, but they had healed and were just like normal children; they had ice creams and went to the beach... But now they were continuously getting younger, with all the knowledge of what was happening to them and what was to come; they were scared and there was little comfort Tony, Pepper or Steve could give against the inevitable. They knew at some point Clint would get a broken arm from when his father had too much to drink and pushed him down the stairs, they knew Natasha would suddenly appear with a stab wound because she'd been too scared to make her first kill and her mentor had turned the weapon against her... The only thing they could do to try and prevent it was re-age them before it happened, but it wouldn't erase the fact it had already happened...

"You can do this Pepper, if anyone can do this it's you" he whispered into hair, kissing her temple. Pepper sighed, doubting Tony's words; she'd already learnt more than she ever wanted to know about Natasha's horrific childhood the last time this had happened, but it appeared she didn't even know the half of it...  
It was a long while before the two of them managed to fall asleep

Over the next few days things were relatively normal, Bruce moved back into the tower and he and Tony spend hours a day working in the labs to try and cure their friends. Natasha's broken ribs healed and Clint's bruises disappeared and for a while, everything was simple.

Then one night Tony and Pepper were woken by a frantic knowing on their door, they opened it to find a worried looking Clint stood there, too shocked to even speak. The two adults tore down the hallway to find Natasha gasping for breath; she was covered in blood and hysterical and Tony didn't have a clue what to do

"Jarvis, wake Bruce and tell him to meet me in the medical wing!"

"Right away sir"

He lifted Natasha from her bed, her small body going limp in his arms as she lost consciousness, and he ran, he was actually panicking, and that didn't happen often

His glance caught with Pepper's for a moment when he exited the bedroom, she was knelt on the floor with Clint in her arms and her gaze said it all; she was scared too

Boarding the elevator, Tony ran almost instantly into Steve, who's face dropped instantly. He swiftly moved out of the way, and Clint threw himself at him instead; his small hands covered in Natasha's blood as he'd tried to stop the bleeding. Pepper joined Tony in the elevator and they rode it down to Bruce's lab in silence.

"Tony, what's the-"

On seeing Natasha Bruce switched into doctor mode, grabbing an oxygen mask and gauze, blood for a transfusion and a copious amount of bandages  
He set about stopping the bleeding; the worst of which was coming from a deep stab wound in her abdomen

Tony and Pepper watched on from the corner of them room, unable to do anything in order to help

She finally stabilised; her blood pressure crept back up, pulse rate dropped back to normal and her O2 stats improved, only then did the three adults breathe a sigh of relief. They told Jarvis to inform Steve, and not a minute later Clint was running through Bruce's lab to the small medical bay that Tony had built in a few years ago

"Tasha?" he asked gently, holding her hand in his, but it was no use; she was still unconscious

"She'll be okay Clint" Bruce reassured him, taking another look at the readings on the monitor by her bed

"You promise?"

Bruce looked up to Tony and Pepper, glancing as Steve entered before looking back to Clint, knowing he couldn't make that promise;

"For now, she'll be awake soon" was the best comfort he could offer

He was right; Natasha woke a few hour later with Clint curled up at the foot of her bed.  
And just like the adult Natasha, she insisted on leaving right away.

Bruce finally relented when she managed to convince Clint to unplug all the monitors and help her back to the elevator where they ran into Steve. Steve carried Natasha the rest of the way, and the two kids spend the day on the sofa watching films. Natasha dosed on and off, but she didn't seem too worse for the ware considering she'd just almost died.

"What on earth did they do to her?" Pepper asked quietly, watching the two children from across the room as she drank her coffee; it had been a sleepless night

"God only knows"

"And we always wondered why she hated talking about her past..."

"You know, I don't think this could have happened to a worse two..."

The other three nodded their agreement with Steve's comment. They heard two voices laughing from the lounge are as Clint and Natasha watched Despicable Me, and the four adults couldn't help but smile, they went and joined them and the six of them fell asleep in the lounge.


	21. Chapter 21

"Tony, we need to go shopping again" Pepper called from the other room

He sighed, they'd been shopping practically every single day for one thing or another... "Why this time?"

"None of Natasha's clothes fit" she called again, as the child in question ran past Tony wearing a dress which was clearly too big for her. She was laughing, and Clint was chasing her also laughing. Natasha's tights caused her to skid across the floor and she ended up in a heap by Steve's feet, Clint soon fell over her and the two of them were in fits of giggles on the floor

It was nice to see them happy again, now that Natasha had recovered from her injuries

"They're deaging at different rates, aren't they?" Pepper asked Tony when he joined her in the kids bed room, she was sorting though their clothes and there was a huge pile that were too big for them

"Yeah, but we still have time. Medical reckon Tasha is about 6 to 6 and a half at the moment, and Clint is somewhere between 8 and 9"

"Do you know why? I mean Tasha's lost over two years and Clint's lost what, one and a bit?"

"As best we can guess they deage less when they're happy, and it speeds up when they're hurt or scared or upset, which is why Tasha is getting so young so quick. I just hope when she hits four; before the red room took her, she had a relatively normal childhood right, so it should slow right down"

Tony peered round the corner to see Clint thrown over Steve's problem as Natasha was jumping to try and 'save' him, she chased Steve round the lounge while he 'kidnapped' Clint and eventually threw her over his other shoulder

Steve tickled them both and they shrieked and wiggled and squealed, so he threw them both down on the couch

Tony laughed as Steve turned around and Natasha jumped on his back, and somehow managed to climb up to his shoulders, Clint clung to his legs so he couldn't move and shouted "We got you! We got you! We win". They wouldn't let him go until he surrendered, and after that Steve and Pepper took the two of them out for ice cream before going to stock up on yet more clothes

Tony headed back to the lab where Bruce was rubbing his eyes tiredly; he hadn't left the lab in almost five days

"I brought you some food"

Bruce jumped slightly, he hadn't notice Tony's arrival

"Thanks" he said, taking a mouthful of coffee and a large bite of sandwich

"Where is everyone?"

"Tasha needs new clothes"

Bruce nodded sadly, he'd noticed her shrink by at least a few inches over the past few days, but if he and Tony were right; now she was fully healed she should stabilise for a while

"You know, I was thinking about bring Jane Foster in on this, I know she's an astrophysicist, but she has a lot of medical background too... And it's someone we know we can trust. She was a big help last time this all happened..."

"A set of new eyes can't be a bad thing" Tony agreed

"I'll ring her later" Bruce said, pushing his glasses back on his nose as he tuned back to his work

"Anything?"

"Nothing new, what about Shield?"

"No, Fury yelled at me last time I rang; they're still not getting anywhere with the remaining Hydra agents, and when I asked where his interrogation experts were he yelled '**She's currently playing with goddamn dolls in your frickin tower!**' and hung up on me

"He's stressed"

"He's not the only one"

"Pepper, can I have two ice creams?" Clint asked hopefully

"No Clint, you can I have one ice cream"

"But I can't decide!" he whined

"Well you'll have to decide" Pepper told him, copying his whining voice and Natasha laughed

"What flavours do you want?" Natasha asked, reaching up on her tip toes to see over the counter, but she was too short and still couldn't see

"Mint chocolate chip and mocha coffee" Clint said longingly, trying his best to convince Pepper but she wasn't budging

"Want to share?" Natasha offered, jumping now to try and see all the flavour Clint was looking at. Steve lifted her up so she could finally see

Clint agreed quickly, before Natasha could change her mind

They ate their ice cream before heading over to the mall once again

Pepper bought some clothes for Natasha, and some more in the next size down as well to prevent them needing to go shopping again too soon

"Pepper, I'm bored"

"I know Clint, sorry. We're almost done"

"I don't like that one Pepper... Or that one" Natasha informed her

She sighed and put several of the tops back on the shelve

"Can we go now?"

"Clint"

"Please Pepper, shopping is boring"

"From now on, I'm buying everything online" Pepper whispered to Steve as she went to the counter to pay


	22. Chapter 22

The next few days, as far as Clint and Natasha were concerned at least, were relatively good fun. Steve taught them to play basketball after lowering the basket so Natasha had a chance of scoring, Tony taught them to ride the bikes he'd bought for them; taking them to the park for the afternoon when the weather was nice, Pepper took them to the museum (which was an eventful day in itself until Clint got them kicked out), and Bruce took them to the zoo for the day when Tony convinced him to have a day off and leave the lab.

Jane was due to fly out sometime over the next few days and Bruce was looking forward to getting a fresh set of eyes on the problem, knowing they would start running sort of time soon where Natasha was concerned

**XxX**

Natasha was sat painting while Pepper worked on her laptop in the lounge; Clint was restless, and had taken to purposely bugging Natasha for something to do

"What's that?"

"It's a flower Clint"

"What's that?"

"A tiger"

"Well what's that?"

"Clint! Stop it"

"Stop what?"

"Asking stupid questions"

"We're not supposed to say 'stupid'"

"Well don't be stupid then"

"Tasha?"

"What Clint?"

"Tasha"

"What?"

"Tasha"

"Stop it Clint"

"Stop what?"

"That!"

"What?"

"You're doing it on purpose!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Clint!"

"Tasha!" he whined, imitating her voice

"Стоп его!" she stuttered, frustrated. When she was annoyed she slipped back into Russian and Clint grinned knowing he'd managed to wind her up enough to cause her to

"Geez Tasha calm down"

"You're so annoying!"

"That's not nice!"

"Leave me alone Clint"

"Pepper! Natasha is being mean to me!"

"Natasha be nice" Pepper called back absently in the middle of a phone conversation

Clint grinned again and Natasha narrowed her eyes, that was when Clint knew he'd pushed her too far; he was too slow to suck when a blob of purple pain hit him in the face

Natasha stuck her tongue out at him, satisfied she'd finally shut him up

He stared in her in disbelief for a second while she went back to painting her picture

She was suddenly interrupted however when Clint retaliated by wiping a smear of red paint across her face. She turned quickly and her paintbrush of green paint covered Clint's sweater

He grinned wickedly; this wasn't quite what he'd imagined but at least he had something to do now. Natasha threw black paint in Clint's hair and he coated her sleeve in yellow, she poured a pot of orange down his back while he rubbed pink paint into her hair. By the time Steve returned from the shops and saw them they were each covered

One stern glare (which he'd been perfecting over the past few days) was enough to make the two kids freeze in place

"He started it!" "It was her fault!" they said in unison, glaring at one another

"Oh my God!" Pepper exclaimed on seeing the state of them, and her dining area, following a five minute conversation on the phone

"Go and run a bath, and then come back and help us clean up" Pepper informed Clint and Natasha clearly before grabbing starting to clear the table

"Wow, you can't take your eyes off them for more than a minute" Steve took in the scene in slight disbelief

"I wouldn't even chance the 60 seconds with those two" Pepper answered back as the two kids in question walked back down the hallway; leaving a trail of rainbow coloured footprints on their way and Pepper sighed

"Socks off!"

Clint sat on the floor to remove the socks; leaving a giant blob of blue paint where'd he'd sat down

"On second thought, just don't move!"

Steve volunteered to clear the table while Pepper went to help Natasha get the paint out of her hair; it would take forever to remove, and even longer if they left it to dry, so Pepper carried Natasha back down the hallway, glad she wasn't wearing one of her good suits now it was covered in paint.

As they opened the bathroom door Pepper sighed again; though the bath was only half full, the whole bathroom was full of bubbles; they'd overflowed the bath, filled the floor and were now reaching levels close to Pepper's waist

"Cool!" Natasha said excitedly, trying to climb down from where she sat on Pepper's hip, but Pepper kept a tight grip and Natasha soon remembered that she was in trouble

"Clint dropped the bubbles in the bath"

"The entire bottle?"

Natasha nodded, glad it hadn't been her to spill the bubble bath

Pepper had no choice but to venture into the bubble filled bathroom in order to switch off the taps which were still running. When the two of them emerged (Pepper had decided it wasn't worth putting Natasha down) they were both covered in bubbles; Pepper was less than pleased about that fact but Natasha loved it, blowing a handful of bubbles at Clint as they went back through to the lounge

"Steve, can you take Clint up to your floor to get cleaned up, I'll use the en suit to sort Natasha out"

Steve nodded, slightly taken aback by the appearance of the two of them covered in bubbles, but he thought it'd be easier not to ask

Clint tried to sneak off to investigate the bathroom a few times but Steve managed to stop him and eventually finished clearing up the table before taking Clint down to his floor so he could use the shower there

It was a bit of a surprise for Tony when he ventured up to his floor to see how the kids were and finding it empty; it was an even bigger surprise when he went into the bathroom...


End file.
